Public Option Makes a Comeback on Capitol Hill

On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he will include a government-run public insurance option in the health care reform legislation he plans to bring to the Senate floor. And on Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced a massive health care reform bill that also included a public option.

The versions of the public option introduced by both of the Democratic leaders were the result of compromises with more moderate and conservative members of their own party. The Senate version includes a clause that would allow states to opt out of a public plan. And in the House version, federal administrators would negotiate payment rates with health care providers, rather than using reimbursement rates tied to Medicare.

Listen to Bowser discuss this and the rest of the week’s health care reform developments on Capitol Hill.

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